Monsters
by Lauren Wagner
Summary: Kurt is in the Brotherhood for a reason
1. Default Chapter

She was terrified.  
  
Sally ran down the alleyways as fast as she could, throwing off her high heels so that she could run faster.  
  
Sally was a big supporter of the anti-mutant rallies, and she had been in one of the meetings when those freaks attacked the place.  
  
They were killing everybody, and she just barely escaped when she heard two of the freaks chasing after her.  
  
She stumbled on a rock and fell to her knees. Panting, she stayed like that until she could hear someone laughing. Looking over her shoulder, she saw that the one who looked like a giant cat was right on her heels. She swiftly got back to her feet and ran as fast as she could.  
  
She leapt down a few stairs and she found herself staring at a brick wall. Holding her breath she dove behind a pile of trashcans. The cat animal walked right up to the pile, sniffing the air. Finally he turned around and he walked away.  
  
Sally gave a sigh of relief, slowly creeping out of her hiding spot.  
  
That's when the second monster appeared from behind in a cloud of purple sulfur. Turning around, she barely was able to let out a scream before he ripped her throat out.  
  
***  
Back at their hideout, the Brotherhood watched the news broadcast as it talked about the massacre at the anti-mutant meeting. Magneto smiled faintly, his ice chip eyes sparkling in the light of the TV.  
  
"The police say that they are not sure who or what caused this slaughter, only that whoever caused this left no one alive at the scene of the attack."  
  
"Do you think Sabretooth and Baxtalo* caught that bitch who slipped through the cracks, Magneto?" Toad asked, tilting his head to one side. As if in answer, Baxtalo and Sabretooth appeared in a large cloud of purple behind the sofa.  
  
"Did you kill her?" Magneto asked without looking away from the TV. Baxtalo perched on the couch beside Quicksilver, calmly licking the blood that was still on his two claws.  
  
Baxtalo was a young man of twenty, with a long and lithe body covered in cobalt blue fur. His feet were large like a bird's with two large claws on his two front toes and a claw on his toe on the back of both of his feet. He had two fingers and a thumb on each hand, each with a curved claw as good as a knife.  
  
His whole look was that of a demon with a long tail that ended in a spade that could be used to easily crush someone's throat. His ears were pointed like an elf, and his eyes glowed a solid golden yellow with no sign of pupils. When he smiled, he revealed long fangs that could tear into flesh.  
  
Even with all of these cruel features about him, Baxtalo's face could look handsome with his European nose and high cheekbones. However, he had a scar on the right side of his face that looked like three thin streaks reaching up to his eye slightly.  
  
His costume was one that he designed himself after joining the Brotherhood. A pair of leather pants the same shade of blue as his fur with crimson red on the sides. The leather was the kind used in the X-men's own costumes, bullet and fire resistant. On his back he had two shoulder scabbards with the straps in a criss-cross over his bare chest with a rapier in each one set up for easy access.  
  
Before he was taken in by Magneto, his name was Kurt Wagner, but now he was Baxtalo of the Brotherhood.  
  
"Baxtalo took her out." Sabretooth laughed, placing a hand on his friend's thin shoulder. "We made her think she had escaped before he teleported in and ripped her throat out!"  
  
"It was easy to do." Baxtalo shrugged. "She reminded me of those women in those old horror movies who run and scream every five seconds!"  
  
"The X-men have sworn to find the culprits of the massacre, and plan to bring them in to the proper authorities." The reported continued. Baxtalo hissed softly, narrowing his eyes as the TV showed a picture of their enemy.  
  
"What do they care?" he asked angrily. "Those people would rather see us in cages with collars and chains on!" His voice took on a slightly whining manner, and Scarlet Witch gently patted his arm.  
  
"That's because the X-men think that if they are good to the monkeys, that they will leave us alone." She explained. Baxtalo snorted, crossing his arms over his chest.  
  
"Well I think that it's stupid!" he spat, his tail thrashing side to side. "They should leave us alone!"  
  
"Baxtalo, calm yourself." Magneto said. "You'll upset yourself if you keep up about this." Baxtalo's tail relaxed and he sighed, bowing his head slightly.  
  
"Yes, master." He said. Sabretooth smiled and looked around before he turned back to his friend Baxtalo.  
  
"Why don't we go practice some moves, Baxtalo? That should get your mind off of this stuff." Smiling, Baxtalo leapt off of the couch and teleported onto Sabretooth's shoulder, his tail wagging like a dog's.  
  
"All right!" he agreed with a smile.  
  
***  
In Xavier's Institute for Gifted Children, Xavier was talking with his X-men about who could possibly have attacked the people at the meeting.  
  
Logan snorted, looking up at the ceiling as the blue smoke from his cigar circled up around his head.  
  
"I wonder who could have possibly done it." He said sarcastically. "I mean, which group do we know hate humans who hate others? Hmm, this is a real brain twister."  
  
"Stop with the sarcasm, Wolverine." Scott snapped. Logan narrowed his eyes slightly at him, removing his cigar from his mouth and putting it out on his open palm.  
  
"My name is Logan, Cyclops." He growled. "We're not on a mission right now, asshole." Bobby and Ororo quickly separated the two by making both an ice wall and blowing a strong wind between the two.  
  
"Scott, Logan, sit down." Xavier said, his voice remaining at the same tone the whole time. "We all know who did this; the Brotherhood. The question is; how are we going to stop them from doing this again? Cerebro cannot find their headquarters so we obviously can't just go in and destroy them now can we?"  
  
"Do what do you propose we do?" Piotr asked.  
  
"All we can really do is wait for them." Xavier said. "I will keep in contact with Cerebro and when it picks up any of the members, that's when you'll go in. If we're able to capture one of them, we may be able to stop the Brotherhood for good. They act like a family like us, so it shouldn't be too hard."  
  
***  
Baxtalo smiled, his tail wagging as he crouched in the corner of the ceiling, hidden in shadow as he watched Sabretooth looking for him below in their own training room. He narrowed his eyes when Sabretooth sniffed the air and he swiftly teleported down and grabbed his ankles with his tail, almost tripping him when the giant cat performed a back flip and got away, swiping at his face.  
  
"You really need to stop teleporting so much." Sabretooth laughed as the two fought back and forth. "The smell of brimstone clings to your fur and makes it easy for anyone to smell you out!"  
  
"Look whose talking!" Baxtalo laughed. "You smell like death and anyone can smell you out! Even in a junkyard!" He gave a yelp as Sabretooth grabbed him by the tail and dragged him down, ending the fight as he placed his claws against his throat.  
  
"You trying to say I smell?" he asked. Baxtalo laughed, careful of the claws.  
  
"Ja!" he said. Shrugging, Sabretooth helped him to his feet.  
  
"Just checking."  
  
*Author's note: Baxtalo is Romani for lucky. 


	2. 2

Baxtalo was so bored!  
  
Snarling, he drew one of his swords and he started to carve into one of the walls, his tongue poking out of the side of his mouth slightly as he concentrated on trying to spell his name right. When he was finished, it looked as if a child had taken a penknife and written on the wall, the words crooked and poorly shaped.  
  
Smiling, he wagged his tail, proud that head written his name out so perfectly.  
  
"Feeling bored?" Looking over his shoulder, Baxtalo smiled and sheathed his sword as Sabretooth walked over to see his handy work. He snorted when he saw how deeply Baxtalo had carved into the wall.  
  
"Magneto is going to have a fit when he sees this." He laughed, running his hand down the letters.  
  
"I can write my name." Baxtalo said. "I was just making sure that I remembered how!" Sabretooth nodded slightly.  
  
"You sure can." He said. "But I think you should try putting it on pen and paper instead of sword and wall." Baxtalo shrugged slightly.  
  
"Can we go on a hunt? I want to get out of here." He said. Sabretooth nodded slightly smiling at him.  
  
"Young or old?" he asked. Baxtalo smiled, his tail wagging like a dog's when it has been shown its favorite dog toy.  
  
***  
Veronica had lost her mommy. She was wandering through the park, crying as she called out for her mommy. Whimpering, she sat down under a tree and hugged her doll tightly, bowing her head.  
  
"Are you lost?"  
  
Looking up, Veronica saw two golden eyes looking up at her.  
  
"Yes, will you help me find my mommy?" she asked. The figure leapt down in front of her, startling her slightly. He looked like a giant Smurf, but he had a long tail like her cats.  
  
"You've lost your mommy have you?" Baxtalo asked, looking over to where Sabretooth was hidden.  
  
"Yes." She nodded.  
  
"Well that's sad, because I can't help you find your mommy."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Because I'm going to send you to a place far away from your mommy."  
  
"Where?" Baxtalo stood up straight and drew both of his swords, licking the blades as he laughed with glee.  
  
"Heaven!" With a roar Sabretooth ripped through the bushes and startled Baxtalo, giving Veronica a chance to run into Ororo's arms as the woman swiftly flew down and then drifted back up into the sky.  
  
The reason for Sabretooth's charge was simple. Logan was charging at Baxtalo from behind in silence, and the two were now locked in combat as their claws ripped at their quickly healing flesh.  
  
Baxtalo ran to help but Hank grabbed him by the tail and pulled him back swiftly, sending him into a tree and making it crack in half. It would have knocked anyone else out, but Baxtalo struggled to his feet and he teleported onto him, stabbing him in both shoulders before he teleported to help Sabretooth with Logan.  
  
The two were battling so closely and wildly, that Baxtalo was unable to see where his friend ended and his enemy began. He growled helplessly, raising his blades to strike him when Piotr grabbed both of his swords and pulled them out of his hands.  
  
"No fair sneaking up on me!" Baxtalo growled, punching at the metal face. He howled as his hand started to throb and he found himself on the ground from one punch to the face.  
  
Sabretooth looked up from his fight to see his friend being knocked down by the Russian. With a snarl he broke free from Logan and his claws slashed Piotr's metal face, driving him back as Baxtalo struggled onto his knees to get his swords. He screamed and stabbed at Logan as he charged at them with his claws out and ready. His blades went into the man's stomach, but that didn't stop the claws from cutting deeply into his chest in a splatter of crimson blood.  
  
Sabretooth didn't notice this, his attentions focused on Scott and Piotr both as they attacked him from either side. To him, he thought his friend was still fighting even though he was now on the ground, too wounded to fight.  
  
Logan grabbed Baxtalo by throat, ready to take off his head when an angry voice ripped into his head.  
  
/Don't kill him, Logan. / Jean said, walking up to him with her eyes narrowed. /The professor said to take one of them as a hostage to get to the others. /  
  
/What do we do with Sabretooth then, dammit? / Logan thought angrily.  
  
/He thinks that Baxtalo is still fighting us. Now head back for the mansion. / Jean directed.  
  
"Baxtalo, we need to pull back!" Sabretooth shouted. He saw his friend nod and run for it, and he followed after him.  
  
The real Baxtalo was roughly thrown over Logan's shoulder, his blood wetting his shirt as he was brought to the mansion. 


	3. 3

Baxtalo wanted to curl up into a fetal position; it was one of his old reflexes from his days in the circus. He slowly tried to curl up, but something was holding down his arms and legs, and it made his chest start to hurt again, with something warm and wet starting to come onto it.  
  
"Oh dammit. He's opened the wound in his sleep!" Baxtalo felt someone take something away, and that was when he remembered the fight in the park and Logan's claws ripping into his chest. Opening his eyes, Baxtalo found himself looking up at the one called Jean Grey.  
  
"Get off of me!" he screamed, trying to slash at her face. She watched a bit sadly as he discovered that his hands and feet were strapped down to the bed he was in.  
  
"Don't fight with me." She said seriously. "I'm just trying to bandage your wound."  
  
"Get away you stupid slut!" he screamed, started to thrash around wildly. Jean backed away in fear, trying to calm him down as the bed started to move violently from his efforts.  
  
"Give him a shot or something, Jean!" Hank cried, wincing slightly when he moved his arms, which were both in casts from Baxtalo's swords. She quickly grabbed a needle and injected it into Baxtalo's arm, making him fall still until he was completely under the medicine's effect.  
  
"Oh my stars and garters! A few more minutes and he might have gotten free!" Hank said. Jean nodded faintly, applying the bandages to Baxtalo's wounds.  
  
"I think it might have been better to take Sabretooth than this one!" she said.  
  
***  
"We have to go back and get him!" Sabretooth said, slamming his hand down on the table for emphasis. "The X-men have him as a prisoner in there!" Magneto was silent, looking down at the table.  
  
"We can't go after him at their mansion." Quicksilver said. "It's heavily guarded."  
  
"It could be a trap too." Toad pointed out. "It's not like they're going to hurt him anyway. They've actually got a moral code about something like that!"  
  
"He's one of us!" Sabretooth said. "That means we need to go and get him back here!" Everyone looked to Magneto, who slowly raised his head.  
  
"We can't risk being captured and then sent to the police." He said. He rose up a hand as Sabretooth opened his mouth in protest. "If we are caught by the authorities, our dreams will be destroyed. We have to wait this out."  
  
Angrily, Sabretooth got out of his chair and stormed out of the room.  
  
"Unus, keep an eye on him." Magneto said. "Make sure he doesn't leave the base for whatever reason."  
  
***  
"I really think we made a mistake capturing Baxtalo." Scott said. "Jean says he nearly escaped during one of his rages." Xavier sighed softly, looking out of his window at the grounds outside.  
  
"There's something troubling that young man." He said finally. "Have you seen those scars on his face?" Scott snorted.  
  
"Logan probably..."  
  
"Those scars are old, Scott." Xavier said swiftly. "From glass smashing into his face." Scott cocked an eyebrow, looking at him seriously.  
  
"You're thinking of recruiting him aren't you?"  
  
"He has such pain inside of him, Scott."  
  
"Professor, we have enough members in our team! We don't need a madman too!" Xavier gave Scott a reproving look.  
  
"He needs our help, Scott. Magneto may have given him temporary help, but it has been mixed with venom that is slowly eating away at him." He said.  
  
"He killed children with Sabretooth for fun!" Scott cried.  
  
"Exactly!" Xavier said. "That is the venom I am talking about. Magneto has taken whatever has happened to him and twisted it so that he now thinks killing humans is a sport of some kind. I need to connect with this young man, Scott. Whether you approve of this or not!" Scott sighed, rubbing the back of his head slightly.  
  
"Just be careful when you talk to him." He said finally. "Jean said that he goes wild when he sees someone standing over him." 


	4. 4

It was that bald man in the wheel chair. He was rolling into the room, and something told him that he was going to meet him and maybe even try to talk to him.  
  
Baxtalo curled up his lip slightly, snarling at Xavier as he rolled up beside his bed. Narrowing his eyes, he clenched his fist and imagined what it would feel like to have his hands around the man's neck and strangle him while bashing his head on the concrete ground.  
  
"There's no need to be so graphic about it." Xavier said. "I think one bang to the concrete would finish me off just fine."  
  
"Stay out of my head you filthy gadje slut!" Baxtalo raged, trying to sit so violently that he tore at the flesh on his wrists. He winced, crying out as he lay back down.  
  
"Gadje?" Xavier asked, cocking an eyebrow slightly. "That's a Roma word meaning a non-Roma. Are you a Romani?" Kurt fell silent, looking straight a head.  
  
"Oh I see; you're going to refuse to answer my questions eh?" Xavier asked with a faint smile. "I could easily go into your mind and..."  
  
"STAY OUT OF MY MIND!" Baxtalo screamed, looking at him angrily. "YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO GO WHERE YOU'RE NOT INVITED YOU STUPID GADJE FILTH!" Xavier looked at him calmly, reaching out a hand and resting it on Baxtalo's arm.  
  
"Baxtalo..."  
  
"Don't touch me!" he snarled, narrowing his eyes.  
  
"I want to help you." Xavier said.  
  
Baxtalo spit in his face.  
  
Xavier closed his eyes slightly, taking out a handkerchief and wiping it off. He looked down slightly, trying to think of what to do or say.  
  
"If you want to help me, go kill yourself!" Baxtalo said. "I don't want or need anything from you!" Seeing that staying here would do no good, Xavier nodded and left Baxtalo alone with his anger and frustration.  
  
***  
This went on for two weeks.  
  
Every day Xavier would come in and try to either make Baxtalo open up, or give him permission to delve into his mind.  
  
Baxtalo told him to suck Scott's crank, screw Hank hard, get his own crank sucked, suck HIS crank, kill himself, etc. etc.  
  
But Baxtalo was starting to wear down from Xavier's visits. He at first got a kick out of frustrating him by swearing and cursing at him constantly. Sometimes, he would simply thrash about, a few times very nearly breaking out of his bonds and scaring the shit out of Xavier.  
  
Soon, his tricks got old, and he stopped yelling and screaming at him. He often was quiet, listening to Xavier as he spoke gentle words to him. He almost reminded him of Magneto, except he said that humans weren't the enemy out to kill all of the mutants.  
  
He was starting to like him in fact.  
  
One day, when Xavier was talking to him, Baxtalo slowly pushed himself to say something to him.  
  
"Kurt." He said.  
  
"Excuse me?" Xavier asked, tilting his head to one side.  
  
"My name." Baxtalo said softly. "It's Kurt, not Baxtalo. Baxtalo is Rom for lucky, and it's the only word I can spell."  
  
"Kurt then." Xavier nodded. "Do you want to talk?" He shook his head slightly.  
  
"I can't say it." He whispered weakly.  
  
"Do you want me to look into your mind?" Xavier asked. Kurt nodded, looking away from him. "All right then, I'm going to untie your hands and feet to do this all right? I need your word that you won't try anything."  
  
"I promise." Kurt nodded. Xavier undid the straps, and Kurt rubbed his wrists and ankles lightly before he sat up, turning his head to look at him.  
  
"When I look, you will also see all right?" Xavier asked. Kurt nodded, and Xavier slowly placed his hands on Kurt's temples, concentrating on his past memories. 


	5. 5

People paid good money to see the Incredible Nightcrawler. Sometimes, the show was completely sold out in a single hour. Margali soon started to raise the prices to see him, and the people saved up as much as they could to at least see him once a year.  
  
After wall, he was a real life demon.  
  
That was what Nightcrawler was, ever since he was found washed up beside a river wrapped up in a blanket. He was a young man now, and he prowled his cage like one of the tigers, baring his fangs at those who got too close to the iron bars.  
  
He was raised as an animal, so an animal he was when the audience was around. He howled like a wolf when the mood took him, and sometimes he leapt at the people and banged against his bars, slashing wildly at the air around him.  
  
Once, when he banged against the bars at a small child who got too close, a man holding a bottle of beer hurled it at him and stopped him from getting at her. It smashed against his face and left him the scars on the side of his face.  
  
Most of the time he was an animal, but sometimes he was a man. Before she moved away, Jimaine would keep him company at night when the others were asleep. She taught him how to speak, and she tried to teach him how to read, but he couldn't. She was able to teach him to write one word and remember it slightly, baxtalo. Sometimes she even gave him hot food instead of the cold fish heads he was given every third day.  
  
When Jimaine left with her brother Stefan, he let out pained howls for a week until Margali beat it out of him.  
  
***  
It was in the middle of a wintry night, and Kurt was curled up in a ball, shivering as his breath came out in large white clouds. As a rule, demons were not supposed to wear clothes, so he was given only a loincloth with enough cloth to make him decent in front of the little children.  
  
Whimpering softly, he tried to curl himself into a tighter ball, his body going into shivering fits now.  
  
He heard someone walking towards his cage. Raising his head, he sniffed the air and hissed softly to try and tried to warn someone away. When that did not work, he got ready to pounce at the bars when he suddenly saw the bars start to wave back and forth like they were made of some kind of fabric.  
  
Whimpering in confusion, he scuttled into the farthest corner of his cage and he pressed his back against it, watching as the bars separated, letting in a tall man in a long cloak and a helmet that covered everything except for his eyes.  
  
"Hello." The man said softly, looking down at Kurt. Kurt tried a weak hiss, but it only made the man chuckle as he walked up and sat down beside him.  
  
"There's no need to hiss at me my friend." He assured him gently. "I am here to help you." He looked Kurt over and he sighed softly, shaking his head.  
  
"You are not an animal, nor are you a demon. You are a mutant, the next step in evolution regarding these pitiful humans. You should be somewhere safe and warm, not in this tiny cage with nothing but a scrap of cloth to cover yourself with!"  
  
The man shrugged off his long maroon cloak and he placed it over Kurt's trembling shoulders.  
  
"That should help until we reach my base." He said. He slipped out of the cage and held out a hand to Kurt.  
  
"This is where you must make a choice my friend. Stay in here to be ridiculed and mistreated, or come with me and become a soldier for my war for equal rights."  
  
Kurt looked at the hand, unsure whether or not he should go. He shifted a little and hugged the cloak tighter around his body. It was indeed warm against the cold, and the fabric was nice against his fur.  
  
Very slowly, he reach out and took Magneto's hand. Magneto helped him walk on two feet instead of all four, letting him lean on him for some support.  
  
***  
When the memory faded away, Kurt wept softly, placing a hand over his face. Blinking rapidly, Xavier gently hugged Kurt, rubbing his back gently.  
  
"I'm sorry." He whispered. "It'll be all right, Kurt." He assured him gently. "I promise you this." 


	6. 6

Kurt was no longer a prisoner in the mansion. It didn't please Logan or Scott too well, but he was given his own room and he was allowed to roam the grounds without anyone acting as his guard or keeper.  
  
Kurt loved it at the mansion. It had other students there, and he didn't feel lonely or angry at anything like he did at Magneto's base. Over there they were constantly planning on killing something or someone, here they were talking about peace and becoming educated about things. Xavier was helping him get over his past experiences, and teaching him to forgive his tribe for what they had done to him in the past so that he could live in the present.  
  
No one told this to Sabretooth however.  
  
***  
Kurt was outside, looking up at the stars in the clear sky when he heard someone coming. Turning his head, he smiled and his tail flopped happily when he saw his old friend Sabretooth creeping over to him, making urgent signals at him.  
  
"What's wrong?" Kurt asked, tilting his head to one side.  
  
"I'm getting you out of here!" Sabretooth said. "Come on!" Laughing, Kurt shook his head.  
  
"I don't want to go back there." He said. "I like it here instead. Xavier has been good to me, and he's not the idiot Magneto says he is!" Sabretooth looked at his friend in confusion.  
  
"Baxtalo?" he asked.  
  
"My name was Kurt before it was Baxtalo." Kurt said. "Maybe you can come and stay with me here! He would take you in!" Sabretooth shook his head.  
  
"I'm not welcome here, Baxtalo." He said. "Just come home with me all right?"  
  
"I feel at home here, Sabretooth." Kurt said. "Don't you understand that?" Sabretooth was silent, looking at his old killing buddy. His entire look had changed, and he had a feeling that he wouldn't leave, and it would be useless to grab him and drag him back too.  
  
Sighing, Sabretooth shook his head as he stood up.  
  
"Good luck with your new home...Kurt." He said. "I'm happy for you." Kurt smiled, standing up and taking Sabretooth's hand.  
  
"I'm glad you're happy for me." He said. "I've never been happier." Smiling, Sabretooth nodded, patting Kurt's hand before he turned around and blended into the shadows once more.  
  
"Kurt?" Looking over his shoulder, Kurt saw Xavier at the backdoor. "It's getting late." Nodding, Kurt ran up and followed him inside, the door shutting gently behind them with a soft click. 


End file.
